A farmer works in a plantation near the Jerash stream, which flows into the King Talal Dam, near Jerash, Jordan. (Reuters)
LONDON – The Middle East region is struggling to ensure adequate water, energy and food security as resources deplete and demand increases due to population growth and climate change.
According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), access to water, energy and food security (WEF) are linked throughout the world and play an important role in sustainable development, poverty reduction and human well-being. Achieving a balance between the sectors is important to maintaining stability in the wake of demand increase and resource decline that is linked to climate change, land use and human demographics.
With a finite amount of water meeting the needs of a growing world population, ensuring a reliable supply through proper resource management is critical to human survival. The most commonly used energy production methods are fossil fuel, biofuel production and fracking, the process of shale gas extraction. All of these are highly water intensive and unsustainable in the long term. As a result, there is a growing need for the development of wind and hydropower, renewable sources of energy that require far less water. Geothermal power is another alternative that does not consume water, produces little to no greenhouse gas as a byproduct and can serve as a climate-independent, long-term resource.
Agriculture, however, is the source of even more water usage, accounting for 69% of annual water withdrawal. Households account for 12%, while the industrial sector accounts for 19%, according to the FAO’s AQUASTAT.
As the world’s population grows, demand for food expands with it. The UN has also theorised that more global wealth has caused diets to shift from largely starch-based products to more water-intensive dairy and meat products. To save water, the organisation suggested more energy-efficient measures such as precision irrigation that tracks water providers’ data.
Nowhere are these changes more needed than in the MENA region, where many nations are suffering from limited energy resources and forced to import basic food as production drops. These insecurities are triggering knock on effects in all parts of life, sometimes leading to social and political instability in vulnerable countries.
In Yemen, for instance, years of civil war that have rattled the country’s industry and economy have left it with no option but to import basic food products.
In Syria, as well, drought and displacement have damaged the water-energy-food nexus that is critical to human flourishing.
Water resources are critically low throughout much of the MENA region, with major aquifers being overutilised and left nearly empty.
The only available water supply to most rural communities, springs, have also been rapidly depleting over the last 20 years as a result of agricultural irrigation in Oman, Jordan and, to a greater extent, Saudi Arabia’s eastern provinces.
The latter was the world’s sixth largest wheat exporter until the turn of the century, but it was forced to abandon these groundwater resource-dependent plans after it exhausted its aquifers. Similarly, Oman had no option but to shift from foodstuffs to Khat and to high usage irrigation methods from their long tradition of terraced agriculture.
Triggering a positive feedback loop, MENA’s water insecurity drove migration to urban areas, stressing already unstable public infrastructure.
While it is difficult for MENA nations to divert themselves from water-intense practices, renewable options are the only sustainable path forward for the region.
What are the alternatives?
Going forward, MENA countries should look to reduce demand and dependence on water-intensive sectors. Rising global temperatures will make the task more difficult, but also more important.
Restructuring energy systems is one way to proceed. However, investing in new technologies, such as wind and solar photovoltaic, will come at a high cost for already financially strained countries – an estimated $1 trillion by 2050, according to a 2019 World Bank Group study. But there are economic benefits too that would come from lower dependence on water. The use of water recycling and desalination, for instance, provide a high degree of value. And the MENA region currently accounts for half of the world’s desalination capacity and is set to increase, according to a 2017 World Bank study.
The World Bank estimated that the MENA region would need to increase its supplies by 68 million cubic meters of water, or 60%, by 2050, while implementing moderate improvements in agricultural productivity and land use.
But to achieve water security and meet the region’s ever increasing water demands, the water supply portfolio must also have water recycling integration. Approximately 80% of the wastewater in MENA is simply discharged and not reused, although countries like Tunisia and Jordan have made positive steps towards recycling wastewater for irrigation use. If wastewater is able to be treated to high standards, recycling should be viewed as an important section of the management strategy.
If allowed to continue, insecurity in the water-food-energy nexus will lead to political unrest, displacement and instability. Researchers have theorised that these developments have already been set into motion as the region largely resists adopting new agricultural practices or investment in new technologies.
In Beirut, on 21 April 2020, Nexus, the Water, Energy & Food security resource platform, published in its blog, all that went on in Workshop on Transboundary Water Cooperation in the MENA Region in Beirut. A Workshop on Transboundary Water Cooperation would obviously be not enough for all the water related problematic to be resolved. Meanwhile, let us see how it did go.
On the 3rd and 4th March of 2020, a workshop on Transboundary Water Cooperation in the MENA Region took place in Beirut, where the Nexus Regional Dialogue Programme (NDP)-MENA shared some of the experiences made with applying the WEF Nexus approach in the Niger Basin.
How can transboundary water cooperation in the Middle East and North Africa be strengthened to support the achievements of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and particularly Goal 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) in the region?
The workshop was jointly organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) and the Global Water Partnership – Mediterranean (GWP-Med).
Throughout the two days, lively discussions were held on good and bad practices as well as lessons learnt from cooperation on transboundary surface and groundwater in the MENA region.
The link between climate change and transboundary water management
The workshop stressed the need to strategically develop approaches for exchanging data and information through methodological frameworks and case studies, involving all the riparian countries. One goal would be a common database featuring indicators on various factors such as guidelines, strategies for M&E or the enabling of the environment, as of this day data on some of these factors is rather incompatible. Tools that could accomplish and aid in this include statistical data and remote sensing or the application of GIS modelling. The exchange between the attendees also shed light on the linkages between transboundary water cooperation and climate change adaptation, such as the role of groundwater used for irrigation, the sustainability of applied pumping levels as well as the salinization of soils. Resources and tools of the Water Convention and the regional climate financing initiative led by the Union for the Mediterranean were mentioned as important tools, together with a set of tools and approaches for improving transboundary water cooperation in the MENA region, including good practices for water allocation and the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem Nexus framework. In addition, the role of the international water law in supporting transboundary cooperation was stressed.
The WEF Nexus approach and transboundary water management
The role of the Nexus approach in offering multiple benefits through the inter-sectoral approach it adopts, however the need for stronger supporting evidence through case studies was highlighted. Participants stressed the importance of considering cross interlinkages when planning Nexus interventions, for example in the use of renewable energy for water abstraction from wells, that can lead to an overexploitation of groundwater due to the abundance of energy for pumping or the creation of employment opportunities that counteract migration through the preservation of water resources and land.
In a session entitled: “Tools and approaches for improving transboundary water cooperation in the MENA region, Experience sharing of Nexus approaches application in transboundary basins from the region and beyond”, Dr. Nisreen Lahham, the Coordinator of the NDP- MENA was sharing the experience of the NDP in the Niger Bain on transboundary cooperation through the Nexus approach together with lessons learnt. (Presentation).
The presentation highlighted the achievements of the NDP-Niger in mainstreaming the Nexus approach within the Niger Basin authority (NBA) which are above others the consideration of the WEF Nexus approach in multilateral planning processes of the NBA’s Operational Plan (2016-2024). The methodology of how the NBA is selecting the activities based on a WEF Nexus dimension was illustrated during the session, which includes a scoring system that highlights the achievement of multiple objectives though a single intervention in a project as well as the avoidance of undesired impacts that conflict with water, food or energy security. Furthermore, a tool for assessing multi- purpose dams in a collective manner to maximize the benefits among all interests and stakeholders in an international setting was presented. As an example, the construction of the Fomi Dam in Niger was used, as it offers a case where the Nexus approach was used in negotiations and multilateral planning processes, with an impact on decision-making, to avoid conflict of interests between different countries on transboundary water management and ecosystem protection.
By the end of the presentation, participants discussed potentials for the MENA region by applying the Nexus approach in transboundary contexts, as seen in the successful example of the Niger basin. The main question was how to enhance the role of regional organizations, such as the Nile Basin Authority, in bringing stakeholders together to work on beneficial transboundary solutions for all riparian countries. Regional knowledge and practice exchange with other regional organizations such as the Niger Basin authority was considered along with improving stakeholders’ capacities for handling resource conflicts.
For further information, please contact Dr. Nisreen Lahham, Regional Coordinator of the NRD programme for the MENA Region.› back
Payback between $3-$8 for every dollar spent on energy transition.
The third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will be operational in April, DEWA Official revealed. Upon completion, the Solar Park will be the largest single-site solar park in the world, based on an independent power producer, model. Dubai media office twitter account.By Staff Writer, ZAWYA
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region will have to invest $148 billion per annum through 2050 to decarbonise the energy system in line with the Paris Agreement, according to the IRENA’s Global Renewables Outlook 2020 report.
The report, which was released on Monday, said the region would need to invest every year up to 2050 nearly $18 billion in renewables, $96 billion in energy efficiency, $5 billion in electrification of heat and transport, $23 billion in power grids and flexibility, and $6 billion in areas like electrolysers for hydrogen production, biofuel supply, and carbon capture and storage combined with improved materials for industry, to achieve the energy transformation needed to mitigate climate change.
“A climate-safe future calls for the scale-up, and redirection, of investment to clean energy technologies. Fossil-fuel investments need to be shifted to renewables and energy efficiency instead, while subsidies to fossil fuels must be phased out”, the report said.
Overall, globally, the total investment in the energy system in the renewable energy-driven Transforming Energy Scenario would need to reach $110 trillion by 2050, or around 2 percent of average annual GDP over the period. Of that total, over 80 percent needs to be invested in renewables, energy efficiency, end-use electrification, and power grids and flexibility.
In annual terms, $3.2 trillion needs to be invested in the global energy system every year to 2050, which compares to recent historical investment (2014-2018) in the energy system of around $1.8 trillion per year, and $2.9 trillion per year in the current (up to April 2019) Planned Energy Scenario, the report said.
The report underlined that “every dollar spent on energy transition would bring a payback of between $3 and $8 in reduced environmental and health externalities.” It said the energy transition will result in more jobs gained than lost with jobs in renewables quadrupling to 42 million globally by 2050.
The MENA region, the report said, would create 1.51 million jobs in the renewable sector compared to 78 million lost in the fossil fuel sector.
(Writing by Sowmya Sundar; Editing by Anoop Menon)
Sustainability Times on April 15, 2020, delivered some thoughts on how MENA is pondering its energy options. A good example is that after several years of hesitation, Algeria and Germany have finally reached an agreement to promote the gigantic Desertec project, aimed at making North Africa and the Middle East full of sunshine, vast reservoirs of energy. The aim is to provide Europe with no less than 17% of its energy needs from this inexhaustible source.
Until not that long ago, the energy needs of most countries in North Africa and the Middle East (MENA) were relatively modest. That’s no longer the case. Rapid economic development and robust population growth across this up-and-coming region have caused energy needs to increase greatly.
Growing demand for air conditioning and desalination, as well as industrial expansion, is especially driving local energy needs. The Arab Petroleum Investment Corporation has estimated that the MENA region will need to expand capacity at 7.4% on average annually, adding 138GW in total. Even as demand for electricity is growing, however, the region’s nations are seeking to wean themselves off fossil fuels in a bid to mitigate the effects of climate change, which is expected to have a marked impact on the environment in an already hot and arid region.
Per capita carbon emissions in Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have been among the highest in the world. Therefore, low-carbon energy sources will be vital and renewables, especially solar, could provide much of the region’s electricity thanks to the ready availability of sunshine all year round. Yet some energy experts stress that enhancing the supply and security of domestic electricity generation can’t be done with renewables alone owing to their inherently intermittent nature. Thus, the diversification of the energy sector will be key to economic stability and prosperity across the region.
Advanced nuclear technology is increasingly seen as a viable alternative to fossil fuels to complement solar and wind in the energy mix. In contrast to the low power density and unit power of renewable energy sources, nuclear offers a means to add significant capacity at speed while not compromising the dependability of supply. For nuclear to come into its own in MENA, however, local governments will need to create favorable market conditions to reap its benefits. The technology requires initial investments that are steep, yet over time nuclear power, if handled well, can be a viable investment. Studies have shown that the system costs of nuclear decrease with a higher market share whereas those of renewables tend to increase.
Energy expert Leila Benali speaks at the World Policy Conference in 2018.
Still, “It would be too simplistic to pretend that you can compare all system costs and lifecycle costs for these two technologies, particularly as both renewables and nuclear have benefitted one way or another from massive government support in their early days, and both have different roles on the merit curve,” stresses Dr Leila Benali, who is a member of Morocco’s Royal Special Committee for the Development Model, as well as Chief Economist and Head of Strategy at APICORP.
“Over the next 10 years, the massive deployment of grid-scale storage solutions might totally change the current dynamic, particularly in a lower demand growth environment,” she adds.
As matters stand now, however, several nations in the MENA region are seeking to take advantage of the benefits of nuclear technology for electricity generation with hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of planned investment. Turkey is leading the way by developing the country’s first nuclear power plant in Akkuyu in collaboration with Russia’s state-owned Rosatom energy company. The construction of the plant’s first unit will be finished in 2023 and Ankara is planning to install several more reactors in coming years.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates, a regional economic powerhouse, expects to meet nearly a quarter of its electricity needs with a new nuclear power plant, which is currently under construction in Abu Dhabi and will consist of four APR-1400 nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 5,600 MW. Jordan, too, is working on a commercial nuclear power plant with several helium-cooled small modular reactors, which is expected to be completed by the mid-2020s. Neighboring Saudi Arabia, which is home to a fifth of global oil reserves, is looking to build a number of reactors for energy generation. Several other nations in the region have expressed a similar desire to launch nuclear energy programs of their own.
Yet the financing of such ambitious nuclear projects in MENA will need to be done judiciously. In November 2015, Russia and Egypt signed an intergovernmental agreement to finance the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant. According to the plan Russia would cover 85% of project costs to the tune of $25 billion via a state-backed loan while Egypt would provide the rest via private investments.
A larger role for private financing behind new nuclear has been described as a potential model for the region – and not just for power generation. “It is true that private financing has historically been missed in nuclear power,” Benali says. “One interesting trend in the region could be nuclear for desalination and that could be an area where private capital could be much more active if we see a few projects developing in the region,” she explains.
Ultimately, Benali says, nuclear technology will require not only economic but some societal changes as well. “Given the large share of youth in several countries in the region where they account for more than 70 per cent of the population, the most relevant angle should be R&D-related,” Benali says. “Equally important should be the inducing of a virtuous cycle of attendant technological research related to nuclear with applications extending beyond nuclear power,” she adds. “These should include medical use and desalination projects.”
However, it is clear that the region’s countries will have their work cut out for them if they are to exploit nuclear power technology in a safe and dependable manner. “The main requirements on nuclear cooperation and safeguards on enrichment and nuclear fuel recycling are key [if the region’s countries want] to introduce nuclear,” Benali stresses.
Space cooling and heating is a common need in most inhabited areas. In Europe, the energy consumed for air conditioning is rising, and the situation could get worse in the near future due to the temperature increase in different regions worldwide. The increasing cooling need in buildings especially during the summer season is satisfied by the popular air conditioners, which often make use of refrigerants with high environmental impact and also lead to high electricity consumption. So, how can we reduce the energy demand for building cooling?
A new study comes from a research group based at the Politecnico di Torino (SMaLL) and the National Institute of Metrological Research (INRiM), who has proposed a device capable of generating a cooling load without the use of electricity: the research has been published in Science Advances*. Like more traditional cooling devices, this new technology also exploits the evaporation of a liquid. However, the key idea proposed by the Turin researchers is to use simple water and common salt instead of chemicals that are potentially harmful for the environment. The environmental impact of the new device is also reduced because it is based on passive phenomena, i.e. spontaneous processes such as capillarity or evaporation, instead of on pumps and compressors that require energy and maintenance.
“Cooling by water evaporation has always been known. As an example, Nature makes use of sweat evaporation from the skin to cool down our body. However, this strategy is effective as long as air is not saturated with water vapour. Our idea was to come up with a low-cost technology capable to maximize the cooling effect regardless of the external water vapour conditions. Instead of being exposed to air, pure water is in contact with an impermeable membrane that keeps separated from a highly concentrated salty solution. The membrane can be imagined as a porous sieve with pore size in the order of one millionth of a meter. Owing to its water-repellent properties, our membrane liquid water does not pass through the membrane, whereas its vapour does. In this way, the fresh and salt water do not mix, while a constant water vapour flux occurs from one end of the membrane to the other. As a result, pure water gets cooled, with this effect being further amplified thanks to the presence of different evaporation stages. Clearly, the salty water concentration will constantly decrease and the cooling effect will diminish over time; however, the difference in salinity between the two solutions can be continuously – and sustainably – restored using solar energy, as also demonstrated in another recent study from our group**”, explains Matteo Alberghini, PhD student of the Energy Department of the Politecnico di Torino and first author of the research.
The interesting feature of the suggested device consists in its modular design made of cooling units, a few centimetres thick each, that can be stacked in series to increase the cooling effect in series, as happens with common batteries. In this way it is possible to finely tune the cooling power according to individual needs, possibly reaching cooling capacity comparable to those typically necessary for domestic use. Furthermore, water and salt do not need pumps or other auxiliaries to be transported within the device. On the contrary, it “moves” spontaneously thanks to capillary effects of some components which, like in kitchen paper, are capable of absorbing and transporting water also against gravity.
“Other technologies for passive cooling are also being tested in various labs and research centres worldwide, such as those based on infrared heat dissipation into the outer space – also known as radiative passive cooling. Those approaches, although promising and suitable for some applications, also present major limitations: the principle on which they are based may be ineffective in tropical climates and in general on very humid days, when, however, the need for conditioning would still be high; moreover, there is a theoretical limit for the maximum cooling power. Our passive prototype, based instead on evaporative cooling between two aqueous solutions with different salinities, could overcome this limit, creating a useful effect independent of external humidity. Moreover, we could obtain an even higher cooling capacity in the future by increasing the concentration of the saline solution or by resorting to a more sophisticated modular design of the device” commented the researchers.
Also due to the simplicity of the device assembly and the required materials, a rather low production cost can be envisioned, in the order of a few euros for each cooling stage. As such, the device could be ideal for installations in rural areas, where the possible lack of well-trained technicians can make operation and maintenance of traditional cooling systems difficult. Interesting applications can also be envisioned in regions with large availability in water with high saline concentration, such as coastal regions in the vicinity of large desalination plants or nearby salt marshes and salt mines.
As of now, the technology is not yet ready for an immediate commercial exploitation, and further developments (also subject to future funding or industrial partnerships) are necessary. In perspective, this technology could be used in combination with existing and more traditional cooling systems for effectively implementing energy saving strategies.
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[*] Matteo Alberghini, Matteo Morciano, Matteo Fasano, Fabio Bertiglia, Vito Fernicola, Pietro Asinari, Eliodoro Chiavazzo. Multistage and passive cooling process driven by salinity difference, SCIENCE ADVANCES (2020), URL: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/11/eaax5015
[**] Eliodoro Chiavazzo, Matteo Morciano, Francesca Viglino, Matteo Fasano, Pietro Asinari, Passive solar high-yield seawater desalination by modular and low-cost distillation, NATURE SUSTAINABILITY (2018), URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-018-0186-x
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